DURBIN DEMANDS NO- DEPORT PROMISE
Dozens march in South Loop on day of DACA deadline
On the day that protections were to expire for people brought to the United States illegally as children, the man who has championed their cause— and given it a name— wasn’t giving up.
U. S. Sen. Dick Durbin said Monday he wants a promise from Kirstjen Nielsen, secretary of Homeland Security, that the so- called Dreamers will not be deported while their renewal applications are still pending under the expiring program, called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.
“I want to have a clear assurance that those that come forward to renew their DACA be protected from deportation while that application is pending. I think that is not unreasonable,” said Durbin, D- Ill.
Durbin wasn’t the only person speaking out publicly on the day of the DACA deadline. About the same time as his news conference, dozens of protesters were gathering in the South Loop to march on the Chicago offices of the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
Marchers banged drums, sang, chanted and prayed as they walked from Willow Creek Community Church, 418 S. Wabash, to the immigration office, 101 W. Congress, where they linked arms and held a vigil outside.
“I’ve had DACA for five years now,” said Erendira Rendon, 32, of Logan Square, who came to the U. S. at age 4. “I’ve experienced a little bit more freedom, a sense of security. . . . DACA has changed my life in somany ways.”
Another “Dreamer,” as DACA recipients are often called, was at Durbin’s side on Monday. Ana Niño Flores, 24, a recent graduate of the Illinois Institute of Technology, was brought to the U. S. illegally at age 5 from Mexico. Durbin’s office helped her renew her work permit, which expired in January.
Durbin’s news conference was held at the engineering firm Clark Dietz, 118 S. Clinton, where Flores works as a transportation engineer.
The Trump administration announced in September that it would end the DACA program and not renew permits that expired after March 5, but a federal court ruled in January that the Department of Homeland Security must continue renewing permits as the matter continues to move through the legal system. Rival immigration plans that would have offered protections for Dreamers failed in the Senate last month.
Durbin helped start and name the “Dreamer” movement when he introduced legislation using that acronym in 2001; DREAM stands for “Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors.”
Monday, he pledged that Senate Democrats will continue to try passing a permanent solution for Dreamers, even though he admitted they have little leverage with the GOP controlling both houses of Congress.
“We have tried everything that we can. We are in the minority,” he said. “Now the only way it moves forward is if the Republican leaders get a signal from the president of something he will accept.”
Oscar Robles, 43, and his 33- year- old wife, Wendy, who live in the Old Irving Park neighborhood, were among the marchers Monday in Chicago. Oscar has been fighting deportation to Mexico for seven years.
“We pray together. We need to stay together. Here, or in Mexico, or in China, you know? We’ll stay together,” Wendy Robles said, adding that the couple’s two daughters, 8 and 11, are U. S. citizens who attend Chicago Public Schools.
“This situation affects our emotions, our situation, our lives,” Wendy Robles said.
“I pray for [ President Trump], I pray that God can touch his heart and change immigration laws.”
But Durbin said he’s not optimistic there will be any solution for Dreamers before the midterm elections because it’s difficult to work with a “totally unpredictable” president who “changes his mind every 15 minutes.”
Just about four hours later, Trump tweeted that “the Democrats are nowhere to be found on DACA. Gave them 6 months, they just don’t care. Where are they? We are ready to make a deal!”